News Release
Mansfield Department of Police
30 North Diamond Street, Mansfield Ohio 44902
(419) 755-9724
Jason Bammann, Chief of Police
For Immediate Release
Date: May 31, 2024 Number: 20
Subject: Updated Cruising Ordinance
The Mansfield Division of Police would like to take this opportunity to remind
everyone of the updated Cruising Prohibited Ordinance recently passed by
Mansfield’s City Council. This ordinance went into effect May 7th 2024 however, the
Mansfield Division of Police would like to give everyone time to adjust to the change.
Mansfield Police Officers will continue to conduct traffic enforcement in the Cruising
Prohibited Designated Area however, Officers have been advised not to cite under
the Cruising Prohibited Ordinance until July 1, 2024. Although, Officers are advised
not to cite under this ordinance until July 1, 2024, Officers can still conduct traffic
enforcement under this ordinance to assist in educating Motor Vehicle Operators and
may take enforcement action on other traffic violations if observed.
A copy of City of Mansfield Ordinance 331.48 Cruising Prohibited is included below
for reference.
Drive safe!
331.48 Cruising Prohibited
(a) Definitions:
(1) “Designated Area” means that area of the City bound by Home Road on
the west, Trimble Road on the east, Park Avenue West on south, and West
Forth Street on the north.
(2) “Designated Hours” means the time between 8:00 PM and 3:00 AM from
Friday evening into Saturday morning and Saturday evening into Sunday
morning.
(3) “Traffic Control Point” means a reference point on a street within the
Designated area within the Designated hours selected by a police officer for
the purpose of enforcing this section.
(4) “Cruising” means driving a motor vehicle on a street past a Traffic Control
Point, within a Designated Area, within Designated Hours, by the Mansfield
Division of Police, more than two times in any two-hour period. The passing
of a designated control point a third time under the aforesaid conditions shall
constitute unnecessary repetitive driving and therefor a violation of this
section.
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(b) Cruising Prohibited. No person shall engage in unnecessary repetitive driving,
also known for the purpose of this section as cruising.
(c) For purposes of this prohibition, upon a determination that a vehicle is Cruising,
the person having control and/or ownership of the Cruising motor vehicle shall be
considered the person cruising, without regard as to whether that person was actually
driving the motor vehicle each time it passed the traffic control point.
(d) “Control or Ownership of a motor vehicle” shall be either the owner of the
vehicle as stated on the vehicle registration, if said owner is present in the vehicle at
the time of the violation, or if the owner is not present in the vehicle, the person
operating the vehicle at the time of the violation of this section.
(e) Exclusions. This section shall not apply to any municipal, emergency, police, fire,
ambulance or other governmental vehicle when such vehicle is being operated in an
official capacity. In addition, this section shall not apply to any licensed public
transportation vehicle, other business vehicles being driven for business or
commercial purposes, or to residents of the designated area traveling to a specific
destination.
(f) Penalty. Whoever violates any of the provisions of this section is guilty of a minor
misdemeanor on a first offense; on a second offense within one year after the first
offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree; on each
subsequent offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a
misdemeanor of the third degree.
*Richland News Network publishes news releases exactly as we receive them, with no edits. Please contact the Mansfield Police Department to complain about misspelled words and grammar mistakes. Not ME!
